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Thursday, September 15, 2016

"Ending Regulation Without Representation" Debate Guide

As you and your friends think about issues to focus on for an upcoming candidate debate or issues forum, perhaps you or someone you know might consider raising the issue of ending "regulation without representation" with a question or statement like the following:

"As we think about ways to create more good paying middle class jobs, one of the most powerful things we can do to spur economic growth is to end the fear of unreasonable and abusive federal over-regulation regulation that limits the creation of new jobs and new investment in our communities.

Today's federal regulators have the ability to re-write regulations to interpret laws in ways that were never approved by Congress. The IRS can even raise taxes without the approval of Congress just by issuing a new regulation!

Do you agree that major new federal regulations should be approved by Congress, so that regulators are more accountable to Congress and so that regulations, like laws, have the consent of the governed?

Or, on the other hand, do you believe that federal regulators should keep their current power to dictate regulations without the approval of Congress?

BACKGROUND In 2016 the House of Representatives voted to pass the REINS Act to require that major new federal regulations be approved by Congress but supporters have not been able to get 60 votes to defeat a Senate filibuster.

Every House Republican who cast a vote voted for the REINS Act. Two Democrats, Rep. Cuellar of TX and Rep. Peterson of MN voted for the REINS Act.

Now, to help break the deadlock in Congress, more than 900 State legislators, 6 governors, the 2016 GOP Platform, the RNC, the National Federation of Republican Women, the American Farm Bureau, the National Taxpayers Union, and 19 state legislative chambers are among those who have urged Congress to propose the Regulation Freedom Amendment to the U.S. Constitution to require that major new federal regulations be approved by Congress. (See www.regulationfreedom.org)

Just as pressure from states helped force Congress to propose the Bill of Rights, and two other Amendments to the Constitution, pressure from governors, other state elected officials, state legislators, and Members of Congress could force Congress to propose the Regulation Freedom Amendment.

That is one reason why more and more elected officials and candidates for both federal and state office are joining the effort to persuade Congress to propose the Regulation Freedom Amendment.

RESPONSES TO COUNTER-ARGUMENTS

If your opponent argues:

"Congress is so dysfunctional that if we required Congressional approval for new regulations NO new regulations would ever get approved."

Say so you think that giving government the power to dictate the rules that govern us is more important than Democracy?

Does that make you part of the "undemocratic party"

But seriously, we require the consent of Congress for every dollar that is appropriated by the federal government. I'm sure many Presidents would have loved to have the power to spend money without having it appropriated by Congress, but most Americans think Democracy is more important.

That is why we require that Congress and the President negotiate, compromise, and come to agreement before the President can spend money.

And guess what, for every year since the founding of our Republic, Congress and the President have come together and agreed on appropriations to spend money. It's difficult, it's messy, it requires compromise...it's called Democracy.

And if we require that consent of Congress to spend money, shouldn't we require the consent of Congress for rules that can put us in jail, take away our liberties, and take money out of our pockets?

Or do you still think those rules should be dictated by bureaucrats in Washington without the consent of Congress?

If your opponent argues:

So you oppose the Presidents regulation for __________ and ____________ (fill in the blanks) to protect _____ from _____.

Your Answer: I support reasonable regulations including regulations to protect the environment, and to protect the health and safety of workers and consumers.

What I don't support is the power of un-elected bureaucrats to make up and dictate those rules without the approval of Congress.

If your opponent argues:

It would be unconstitutional and violate the separation of powers to give Congress a veto power over federal regulations.

Your Answer:

That's why I am urging Congress to propose the "Regulation Freedom Amendment" to the U.S. Constitution to require that major new federal regulations be approved by Congress.

More than 900 state legislators, 6 governors, the National Taxpayers Union the American Farm Bureau and legal experts like Boyden Gray a former Chief White House Counsel (for President George H.W. Bush), support it as well.

The Courts have given the President too much power to re-write federal laws without the consent of Congress. We need to restore the checks and balances on the abuse of Presidential power intended by the authors of our constitution.

But I guess you prefer to let the President and his appointees keep their power to issue edicts that change the meaning of laws without the consent of Congress.

And if you opponent argues:

Congress does not have the expertise to make a judgment on every technical regulation. Drafting regulations should be left to the experts.

You answer:

The Regulation Freedom Amendment does leave the DRAFTING of regulations to regulators. But, they must be APPROVED, by Congress. No matter how technical, regulations, like laws that govern us, should, in the end, have the consent of elected officials that represent us.

And if your opponent argues:

Congress does not have the time to review every regulation. They will get bogged down and nothing will happen.

Your answer:

The Regulation Freedom Amendment provides that if 1/4 of the House or Senate object in writing to a proposed federal regulation, it must be approved by a majority of both the House and Senate"

That way only the most controversial regulations will be subject to Congressional review, and non-controversial regulations can be issued in the way they are now.

But if a Regulation is controversial enough to merit the objection of 109 Members of the House or 25 Senators, then it deserves to be reviewed by Congress and should not go into effect unless, like a law, it is approved by majorities in both the House and Senate.

The House and Senate have committees and staffs that can review and study proposed new regulations and refer them to the full House or Senate for a vote.

The House or Senate rules, if adopted by the necessary majority, could even provide that a package of regulations be submitted together for approval in one vote.

But regardless of how much work it requires, does Congress have anything more important to do than ensure that the rules that govern us have the consent of Congress?

TEXT of the REGULATION FREEDOM AMENDMENT

"Whenever one quarter of the Members of the U.S. House or the U.S. Senate transmit to the President their written declaration of opposition to a proposed federal regulation, it shall require a majority vote of the House and Senate to adopt that regulation."

And if your opponent argues:

I support reforms to the regulatory process but I just don't think we need to re-write the Constitution.

Your answer:

A law passed by Congress can be weakened, repealed, or waived by a future pro-big government Congress or it could be challenged in Court.

A Constitutional Amendment, on the other hand, permanently restores checks and balances on the abuse of Presidential power. It can't be repealed by a future Congress or overturned by a future Supreme Court majority that favors more unlimited Presidential power.

And if your opponent argues:

We can't get Congress to agree on anything, so we'll never get a 2/3 vote in both the House and the Senate, and a Constitutional Amendment will never happen.

Your answer:

Don't be so sure.

You may recall that the first 10 Amendments to the Constitution, our Bill of Rights, to limit the abuse of power by the federal government, were proposed by 2/3 of the House and Senate because they knew that 2/3 of the states wanted a Bill of Rights.

In fact three times in American history, starting with the Bill of Rights and including the 17th and 22nd Amendments for popular election of Senators and Presidential term limits, pressure from the states has helped force Congress to propose Amendments that states wanted.

So 12 of the 27 Amendments to our Constitution were proposed with the help of pressure from the states.

Today there are many Republicans and Democrats in at least 34, 2/3, of the states who think that decisions about how their states are governed should be determined by elected officials, not by bureaucrats in Washington.

Polls show that by 2-1 margins voters favor a Regulation Freedom Amendment to require that major new federal regulations be approved by Congress.

If state legislators and governors in at least 34 states along with supporters in Congress and an overwhelming majority of the public demand that Congress propose the exact same Amendment, Congress might very well be persuaded to propose that Amendment.

19 state legislative chambers have already passed Resolutions urging Congress to propose the Regulation Freedom Amendment to require that major new federal regulations be approved by Congress.

Will you join with us in urging that Congress end "regulation without representation" or do you want to let regulators keep their power to dictate without the consent of Congress?

-------------------------------------------------------- For more information and answers to more questions you are welcome to contact me.

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Arthur C. Pillsbury early understood the problems facing his generation. His solution applied edge technologies, film and an expanded understanding of the living processes of the natural world, to awaken people to the need to respect the integrity of the natural world.

His work changed the world, but remains to be finished by those of us now living.